Feelings at Harris' alma mater Howard University sway between joy and doubt

Washington, DC — They came with their signs and banners. They kicked off with joy, dancing and singing. And as the results trickled in, beamed on a giant screen, feelings at the Howard University lawns fluctuated between satisfaction and uncertainty.

For thousands of jubilant supporters of US Vice President and the Democratic nominee Kamala Harris, victory against Republican Donald Trump is near.

But a section of US media has cast doubt for the Democrats, who along with Harris are hosting an Election Night watch party at the university in Washington, DC — a historically Black college and Harris alma mater.

"I'm very optimistic that she can win based upon what this institution stands for and why it was started," Anton House, 46, tells TRT World, away from the cheering crowd.

House immediately adds, "but even if she doesn't win, it's still a great thing for the university because the first Black university president Mordecai Wyatt Johnson, he was the one that created the overall template and strategy to dismantle Jim Crow so that other people of colour could have access to the American dream."

Jim Crow laws enforced racial segregation in the US from the 1880s-1960s.

Harris has deep connections with the Howard University, which she has called her home. She graduated here with a degree in economics and political science in 1986 and was an active member of Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority.

House says Harris win can be a positive thing for women, people of colour, native Indian people, and Asian people "to see that they are also a part of the democratic ideals and institutions in America."

"But also, we have to see how she will treat the issue of the brothers and sisters in Gaza. It is a fantastic thing to see her win, but we don't want her to be the face of imperialism and white supremacy in response to oppression of people of colour."

'A prime example of success'

Israel's war on Gaza has to an extent influenced US election talk. The issue dominated part of the election campaigning and narrative of both Democrats and Republicans who, in recent months, went on an outreach spree in states and counties where Muslims could tip the balance.

Both Harris and US President Joe Biden have been accused of being "complicit" in Israel's carnage in the besieged Palestinian enclave.

On Tuesday, outside the university, protesters made it sure that they remind Harris' supporters of the war in Gaza, holding a large banner that screamed "stop arming Israel."

Olivia DiNucci of DC for Palestine Coalition, who holds an extreme end of the banner, tells TRT World that American people do not want billions of dollars going to Israel which is "commiting genocide of Palestinian people."

"I have heard her (Harris) calls for ceasefire, but she also says she is going to continue to arm Israel… There is no way you can have a ceasefire and provide the guns and bombs to Israel," she says.

Back in the lawns of the university, as more supporters, mostly Black, gather to hear someone who could be America's first woman and first Black woman president, Ale-Ceon Nyimpha and her friend Dasciq Cofield, express confidence in Harris.

"Kamala started here as a student, not knowing in which direction she would go in or towards. But ultimately, it's like a revolving door. She started here at a Black university..., and here she is running for presidency where she would get a chance to ultimately change all of our lives," says 21-year-old student Nyimpha.

Her friend, Cofield, also 21, says it is important for African Americans to see that "there is a prime example of success."

"I think the biggest issue for me is being a woman. Black women are the most disrespected women in America. We do not get the luxuries and the things that anybody around this world gets. So, to have a Black woman as a representative of what we can be is very important for me."